Community Health Development and Implementation

Health is the level of functional and metabolic efficiency of a living organism. The World Health Organization (WHO-2006) defined human health in its broader sense as “a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity”. Health, or health and well-being, are also includes a supportive environment, personal security, freedom of choice, social relationships, adequate employment and income, access to educational resources, and cultural identity. Over the last decade, health promotion practitioners have increasingly been asked to think about the relationships between humans and the environment in terms of ecosystems and to adopt an ‘ecological’ approach to health promotion with the environment an integral part of human development. Hygiene is a set of practices performed to preserve health. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), “Hygiene refers to conditions and practices that help to maintain health and prevent the spread of diseases. Hygiene is a concept related to cleanliness, health, and medicine. It is as well related to personal and professional care practices. In medicine and everyday life settings, hygiene practices are employed as preventative measures to reduce the incidence and spreading of disease. Hygiene practices vary, and what is considered acceptable in one culture might not be acceptable in another. In the manufacturing of food, pharmaceutical, cosmetic and other products, good hygiene is a critical component of quality assurance. The terms cleanliness and hygiene are often used interchangeably, which can confuse. In general, hygiene refers to practices that prevent the spread of Health, Hygiene, and Sanitation 45 disease-causing organisms. Cleaning processes (e.g., hand washing) remove infectious microbes as well as dirt and soil and are thus often the means to achieve hygiene.

Mass awareness campaigns will be conducted in the suggested area under this project. Under this Mass awareness campaign, a public awareness campaign will be run by bringing together the leaders and locals of the designated area. Under this, masks and sanitizers will be distributed among the locals. Also, personal hygiene kits will be distributed to school-going children. Cluster-wise workshops will be organized for the capacity building of ICDS department Supervisors and Anganwadi workers of pre-primary education, health, and wellness of children. Also, coordination with the local health and wellness department will provide information on the health and well-being of children and parents in different areas. Locals will be made aware of government schemes related to health, hygiene, and sanitation in the local area.

The behavioural change will take place in the daily activities keeping in view the hygiene and health of Anganwadi children and school children. This will inculcate good habits in children and students regarding health and hygiene. Also, there will be awareness among the parents of the children and other locals about the health, hygiene, and education of their children. The participation of parents in the education of children will also increase. Efforts to disseminate information about government schemes related to health, health, and education to the locals will encourage the locals to become beneficiaries of the government scheme.